As a young actor in New York, Chazz Palminteri did a lot of theater. And when he moved to Los Angeles, he booked guest appearances on television shows like “Matlock,” “Hill Street Blues” and “Dallas.” Restless for a career-making part, however, Palminteri remembered something his father had told him, and decided to use his own life story to create not only the role of a lifetime, but also the enduring cornerstone of his career.

“I picked up a card my father had given me that had these words written on it: ‘The saddest thing in this world is wasted talent.’ I realized then and there that if no one was going to give me a great part, then I would have to write one for myself.”